Doing It Wrong

But he answered one of them and said, "Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius?" Matthew 20:13

As the title of elderly becomes more my own, I seem to do more things wrong. Such as the time I reached to brush a few crumbs off my front with one hand and whacked the plate full of crumbs in my other hand to the floor. Truly the right hand did not know what the left hand was doing, but I think Jesus had something else in mind when He said that. When Jesus told the parable of the laborers and their pay, He wasn't speaking of my elderly fumbling either. This parable tells of some workers having a scale of right and wrong, and then placing their expectations on Him. The boss in the parable didn't go for that, and he showed to the disgruntled expectation-ers that he was not working by their knowledge of good and evil.

As one born later in the work day, I'm glad that we can work for full pay in the kingdom of God!

Bucky

They's Us!

Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound!
They walk, O LORD, in the light of Your countenance.
  -- Psalm 89:15

You and I may have wondered about those people stuck out in that last blizzard on the highway. Why, we thought, what need drove them to attempt such a foolish thing? Well I met one of them this week, and the statement was, "We thought we could make it." Of course they did, so did everyone else stuck with them. One of those no-one-said-ever things goes something like, "We knew we would get stuck out there in the howling wilderness between Sturm and Drang, but we went anyway." If you or I have never been stuck in a blizzard it is because we have the grace of God to thank for it. Because each time we each thought we could make it was one of those times when just another inch of snow, a swirl of vision-robbing snowflakes, or a slip of a tire was the tiny difference between making it and being one of those poor fools stuck on the highway during a blizzard. Being stuck in a society of go, go, go, is a worrisome thing for us. And, all those people stuck somewhere? Why they's us on a day we thought we could make it. 

Walk in the light of the Lord's countenance! One day it could be you or me stuck out there just trying to get where we were going. 

Bucky

Remember The Law Of Thanksgiving

And when you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the LORD, offer it of your own free will.  Leviticus 22:29

It's Thanksgiving week so you should be thankful! Uh, remember the law about free will? This week of our Thanksgiving holiday gives many ministers the chance to put the screws to you about giving thanks to the Lord. Sounds like the Pharisees would approve, even as they ignored a certain law in our verse for today. In keeping with God's desire for freely given thanks, the Lord's Prayer Jesus gave to us in His great sermon does not have anything about giving thanks. While some might forget that law, Jesus certainly did not. Freely giving thanks to the Lord means that I do not get to badger you into it or even subtly drive you toward it. However, writing ministers and speaking ministers alike can give testimony by example. 

Thank You, dear Lord God, for my beloved in Christ who read and hear Your word, and rejoice in You in thanksgiving this week. 

Bucky

Take Time To Rest

Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
  -- Psalm 46:10

So, I had the verse and I was writing away when I sensed that all was not going well. In place of running with the Lord, it seemed more like I was running into Him. That was yesterday's writing. Therefore, I backed off and kept quiet. At times we think we must be in a continual performance before God, like there is some sort of heavenly quota set for each of us. And you have probably sat before a minister who has confirmed that for you. Yet, both of us (and that minister) forget that Jesus often broke away to find solitude with His Father. Our verse for today points out that God's work does not depend upon you or me. Our job in this verse is to be still and know that He is God. No writing, speaking, singing, or pounding the pavement, just a time to be still and know God more. 

So take time with the Lord to rest from your labors. 

Bucky

Somehow, We'll Know

And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. Mark 9:4

Would you know Elijah and Moses if they appeared to you today? Would we even know each other, if we haven't seen one another for these past twenty years? How will we know one another in Heaven when we meet with Jesus there? I do not know! But I do know that somehow Peter, James, and John knew who Elijah and Moses were in that moment on the mountain. Centuries separated the Lawgiver and the prophet from those three disciples, and yet they knew the names that went with the faces. Had our Lord chosen David and Isaiah to meet there, I'm convinced that the knowing would have been the same. And so it will go when we meet brothers and sisters in Christ who we never met on this earth due to time or distance. New name given by our Lord, new incorruptible appearance granted by God, don't try to hide, I'll still be able to find you there in God's Heaven! And great will be our rejoicing in Jesus Christ!

Bucky

The Pull Of Attraction

But every man is tested when he is turned out of the right way by the attraction of his desire. James 1:14 BBE

BBE, Bible in Basic English, of course you knew that already. I didn't. Occasionally I like to explore different translations of the Bible to help me understand the Word. Here is what this verse says in my usual New King James version:

But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.

Attraction, desire, enticement, all refer to that pull of the flesh for food, clothing, water, sleep, and many other things. Hunger lets a person know it is time to eat something, but a little further down the path comes gluttony. And indeed in the passage James goes on to tell of that slippery slope from attraction to sin and on to death. And it can be difficult to know for sure whether that attraction to a person is simple lust or the sort of pull toward a person leading to love. We even confuse the issue further by telling of our love for foods and other things. As it is a test, we know that failure is an option we may fall into at times. Praise God for His mercy in those tests of attraction that we fail.

Bucky

Hey, Pray!

Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. Jeremiah 29:12

Reading along with the story the characters come to a trap, crisis, problem, or challenge of unusual proportions, and we marvel that they do not have a better solution. Easily do we call upon those fictional people to pray to God and call upon His name. Instead they waste time worrying, fretting, arguing, fighting, and running about like those proverbial headless birds. Then life comes a calling to you or me, and we... worry, fret, argue and so on. How is it so easy for us to see the need when it is there on the book page and then be so dense when it is our turn? We need a 'Hey, pray!' from a fellow soldier in Christ, a little intervention from the beloved of our Lord. It happens to the least of us, we get caught up in the problem and forget to call on the One who has the solutions. New believers or well-experienced warriors in the challenges of following Jesus our Lord, each may suffer that temporary amnesia for prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.

Therefore, be on the lookout for your brothers and sisters in Christ, and give them a 'Hey, pray!' when the need comes.

Bucky

Prayer, Quietly

But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.  Matthew 6:6

From the great sermon of our Lord on the mountain, we have this instruction on prayer. And in these latter years we might parse and parcel this one verse to start in on others with more instructions. "You shouldn't pray in church!" the zealous one says to the pastor. "Sorry, but I need this room for a prayer room," the well-meaning father says as he takes over a child's bedroom. And who among us hasn't held our hands out for those open rewards? In the great sermon there are other instructions on prayer, including that manner of prayer we are to use. Also, the instruction in our verse today came from avoiding those public prayers that only call attention to the prayer shouter and caused the hypocrisy of the religious leaders. Not every public prayer is or was done for that reason.

If we want to pray in the secret place, what better door to shut than the mouth, and what better secret room than that of the mind where only God will hear? Have a prayer with the Father, quietly. 

Bucky

He Makes Us

This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”  Romans 1:17 NLT

Sometimes we may fall into thinking that we have something useful to offer the Lord our God. As if the Almighty could somehow have need for an all-weaky to do something for Him. But that sort of depressed thinking doesn't take into account the love of the Lord! So, as we have nothing to offer up to Him but our old sinful selves, God gave us the Good News and set about making us into something His Son can bring home to Him. As Paul tells us, by faith we become a great accomplishment of the Lord. In other words, He makes us something. Something righteous, something grand, something wonderful in Christ the Lord who is called Wonderful. 

So heads up, Christians, and let us resume our march to the Holy City! 

Bucky

Endure Hardship Gratefully

You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 2 Timothy 2:3

While we would mostly like to avoid hardship, it is hardship that makes us most proud of our service. If a veteran can recall no hardship from their service, they probably think they somehow did it wrong or were cheated. In this world hardship seems to go with service of any type. This is not to say that service cannot be rewarding and even enjoyable at times. One way to gain reward from service is with a grateful heart. That isn't an easy thing to do. But who can help us with that? The One who saved us of course, our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ!

And we also have the great privilege of praying one for another, what a loving service that is!

Happy Veterans Day! Thank you for allowing us to serve you.

Bucky

Targeted Generosity?

Let my plea come before you;
deliver me according to your word.
-- Psalm 119:170

I read about a plea going out last night by way of thanks to the responders this morning. No, the actual plea was not seen or made public it seems, nor the reason for the plea except for the mention of 'fire'. You have likely seen these before on social media, and it can be frustrating to our curiosity. "What happened?" one commenter noted on the post; no doubt speaking for a great many other readers. But I get it too. People can be quite generous, even overly so, when a disaster happens. Stories of mountains of donated clothing abound in the aftermath of disasters. A family who has just lost their house doesn't need to be burdened with several hundred pounds of used clothing. So targeted generosity may be wise at such a time. If a few can take care of the need, then there is no need to ask from hundreds. Which brings us to pleading with our Lord in prayer.

We know by faith that we will receive from our Lord just what we need. And, even if we do not know the names or the story, we can plead for the needs of those the Lord knows well.

Just pray!

Bucky

P.S. My 'plea' search led me to a scripture with the highest number of digits I've ever used, I think!

Appreciating The Good Shepherd

What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?  Luke 15:4

In our verse for today we can easily see a great difference in appreciation for the shepherd between the 99 sheep that were left and the 1 sheep that was lost. The larger group might even go so far as to call the shepherd a traitor for leaving them behind. While the one will of course feel a great love and appreciation for the shepherd. Even more appreciation might be felt from a sheep that was lost in a tough place versus one only lost a little bit. We follow our Lord Jesus in applying this metaphor to ourselves. When Jesus found you, just how lost were you? Those lost greatly will tend to feel the greater appreciation. However, do not give up on the 99, while the Spirit helps them to deal with temptation, they too will feel a great appreciation when the Good Shepherd returns bearing that one lost sheep. And all 100 will rejoice with the Savior when we are led into His home and pasture. 

Let us rejoice in the Good Shepherd!

Bucky

Melting Heaviness

My soul melts from heaviness;
Strengthen me according to Your word.
-- Psalm 119:28

These past few months have seemed rather long due to a thing going on that I won't name this morning. Whether you are pleased or disappointed at the projected result, turn to the word of the Lord and be strengthened. Rejoice or seek relief in the word of God as you read and study. Outside my window Nature either celebrates or covers its grief in a blanket of new snow. Up in Heaven, God's throne was neither built up nor tilted down by the result of that thing I won't mention for your sake. And God's planned day for the return of His glorious Son? That day is still coming at the appointed time no matter what our feelings are this grey morning. So, to those who are happy and those who are sad:

Great is the Word of our Lord God!

Bucky

Your Own Didn't Know You

He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. John 1:10-11

Tomorrow we face another presidential election. For a moment, imagine that neither of the big party candidates win and you do. While your first thoughts are still running along the lines of "Eeek! No! No!" the electoral college meets and confirms that you are indeed the president-elect of the United States. In January there is a big ceremony and, finally calmed down a bit, you take the oath of office and move into the White House. One of the first things you must do is to bring the big armored car and a few of those folks in dark suits back to your hometown for a visit.

However, things are strange at home. No one seems to care, the police leave a parking ticket on the limo, and your principal and teachers cast doubt on your claim to be president. At church, the preacher says your election never happened, and names you a fraud in the strongest terms. Finally, before you can leave town the Secret Service is forced to arrest the police chief and all the town officers when they try to arrest you for impersonating the office you know that you now hold! What sort of delusion has a hold of your hometown?

We know of course that Jesus faced a similar dilemma. The One who came to save the world couldn't get a single 'Hallelujah!' in His hometown of Nazareth. The religious authorities refused to believe His divinity all over Judea, Galilee, and other Jewish places. And, even those precious twelve followers would fail to believe until after He died, rose again, and ascended in their sight back to His Father in Heaven. Even to this day it is easier for us Gentiles to believe in Him than His own people in Israel.

Praise God that we are allowed to believe in His Son!

Bucky

You Must Seek

But you shall seek the place where the LORD your God chooses, out of all your tribes, to put His name for His dwelling place; and there you shall go. Deuteronomy 12:5

Seeking a place was put into the Law of Moses way back in the days when Israel had not possessed the promised land yet. A search, but why didn't the Lord just tell them where to go? You do know what happens when even a righteous authority tells us what to do, don't you? A journey of seeking though, that would give the Israelites a bit of that control the rebellious heart longs to hold. Jesus told Israel much the same thing years later when on the mount He said, "Ask, and you shall receive. Seek, and you shall find..." As born sinners we do not like to be told what to do, but we do like searching for treasure or a nice place to live. We love to seek for treasures in the Lord's word, but tell us that we must read 5 chapters per day and the mind finds all sorts of excuses to avoid a good habit.

It's like the Lord God knows us.

Bucky